7x57 for UK stalking

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This may have been covered before, but I'd appreciate the views of those who have used a 7x57 for stalking in the UK. Having searched the Internet, views range from it being only suitable for use out to 100 yards on deer to it being the ideal calibre for plains game. Is it necessary to reload to get the best performance or is there some good factory ammunition out there? All the best, Rupert

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I still shoot a 30-06 and 6.5x55 for deer to be fair and hunted most of my life with .243. I love the guns so I take them all out, but the 7x57 is hands down the best all rounder and if I had to only own one gun and hunt for anything I'd pick that. A north fork cps would sort most DG even

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7x57 is just avery nicely balanced easy shooting cartridge. The original load was a long 173gn bullet at 2400 fps, then Rigby took the base cartidge and loaded it with a 140 gn bullet at 2800 fps and called it the 275 Rigby. Most factory loads are a 140 gn at c 2600 / 2650 fps. In my cabinet is a Rigby from the early 1970's. It was the owners rifle on a Scottish stalking estate and its accounted for several hundred red and sika. Its been passed to me by his son. I haven't used it a lot yet, but I have tried several different brands of ammo - I was given a mixed lot of ammo and it all shots pretty much to point of aim at 100 and all within an iPhone sized group. It likes the green box Remington and that groups well within an inch. I have used a 7x65r for many years with a 139gn Hornady softpoint at c 2600 fps. Terminal effect is not spectacular, rather deer are just knocked straight over with a good size entry and exit wound that eat right up to.

7x57 is also very comfortable to shoot, indeed much nicer than even a 243. Its a nice gentle push, rather than a snappy jab of a 243/308 or other high pressure cartridge.

If you want it fast and flat shooting then RWS do a 123 gn load that is flat shooting which if sighted 4 cm high at 100m, is only 2.6cm low at 200 and 13 cm at 250.

Hornady do two loads - a 275 Rigby with the 139gn soft point bullet at 2680 - sight it 2" high at 100, zero at 200, 9" low at 300. And 139 gn SST Superformance which is 2760 fps, and 8" low at 300.

Fundamentally sight it a bit high at 100, and put cross hair in middle of shoulder and squeeze. If it is getting a long way out hold a wee but higher.

The only downside of the 7x57 is it seems to have lost popularity as its getting on for 120 year old cartridge. Ammo is reasonably available, so are rifles, but you do have to shop around a bit / think ahead. I am surprised it has fallen out of favour because it is pretty nice cartridge.

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I use the rimmed version, 7x57R in a drilling with a 24" barrel, using a load I developed myself and a 150gr bullet. Tiny groups at 100m, no recoil to speak of, not much noise either, and everything falls over nicely.

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The two finest 7 millimetre cartridges ever conceived are in my order of preference having owned and shot both are;
7 X 64 & 7 X 57.
With the 7 x 64 and Speer 160 grain Grand Slams , I dropped more pigs than I care to remember. The hand load I used was 50 Grains of the old Dupont 4831 and the velocity was a modest average 2600 fps, the pigs didn't seem to notice. My good friend John B probably shot more NZ Red Stags with his Husky 7 x 57 than anybody I know and John never felt the need to go 'magnum.'
Bullet selection is the key, if I lived in the UK and was able to hunt Reds & Fallow , I should like nothing more than a quality 7 x 57. I would of course hand load. Premium projectiles are not mandatory, a good old flat base soft nose will serve very well.

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I used a 7x57 for a long time it does well enough, but I have found the 7mm-08 to be more efficient in case capacity for reloading,
You can get 2,700fps quite easily from the 7mm-08.
As for recoil they are the same.

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I used a 7x57 for a long time it does well enough, but I have found the 7mm-08 to be more efficient in case capacity for reloading,
You can get 2,700fps quite easily from the 7mm-08.
As for recoil they are the same.

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Such a wide range of bullets from which to choose, make the 7x57 (and 7mm-08) a very flexible cartridge. And there are a lot of different constructions of bullets in the 140, 150, 154, 160, and 175 grain bullets, for all types of game, velocities, and distances to target. You can tailor loads for tiny deer or largest ones, or just pick one weight and bullet and do them all. Recoil is pretty mild, under 15 ft-lbs with middle range bullets in full load.

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7x57 is very mild to shoot and as a result I find it easier to shoot accurately. Being new to home loading I've found it easy to reload. Pick a 'bog standard. softpoint bullet in the weight range you want and see what factory loads or reloads it likes. Doesn't need anything hyperperformance I had the same performance and accuracy with basic S&B 140 grains as I did Hornady superperformance at 4x the price.

Reloading (again without trying to hot it up) gave a mild and accurate load for a 145gr cup and core softpoint which gives me an inch group at 200m. I've shot the same bullet at gongs at 400m and 600m without any drama. My scope zero'd at 200, I use halfway between the crosshair and top of thick post as bang on for 400m and the top of the thick post as bang on for 600m. So take any comments about rainbow trajectories with a large pinch of salt!

On deer - very little meat damage. Put deer down without any fuss if I do my bit. As its soft to shoot I find I am more confident with it. Took a roe buck off sticks at a paced 180m. Main point is that I was confident to take the shot as its an easy rifle to shoot well.

I've found most folk think its an outdated calibre - until they try it!

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I've a Heym 44B kipplauf chambered in 7x57 and it's a joy to shoot and stalk with. It goes bang, things fall over. Little recoil from a stick thin rifle, and minimal carcase damage with any vanilla 139/140gr softpoint or heavier bullet. No fuss and it does the job extremely well and effeciently, but it's an ancient cartridge that didn't originate from the US, so not worth bothering about these days.

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There would be 800 elephants that might testify to the effectiveness of the 7x57 Mauser/275 Rigby in the hands of one W.D.M. 'Karamojo' Bell
Also don't forget Jim Corbett shot most of his tigers with one as well.
I have a lovely little BSA Hunter in 7x57 that's taken lots of Sika stags, and been to Africa with me its taken wildebeest and a Huge Kudo bull, and on my last trip I picked up a 7x57 case with a late 1800 stamp on it. deerwarden

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An excellent choice for all round U.K. stalking in my opinion. I have had a Ron Wharton Rigby .275 for over 10 years and shot multiples of all 6 uk deer and everything from Springbok to Eland with it in Africa. Generally I use a 150 grain nosler in U.K. And 173 grain partition on plains game. Apart from the 6.5mm in small Calibres it has one of the highest ballistic coefficients if you choose the right bullet. Low recoil and if you homeload a very wide range of bullets
longest shot was hind stalking at 400 yards and nice exit wound
as with all things know your ballistics and correct bullet placement and it will deal with anything non dangerous with ease